Veneer-machine.



PATENTED OCT. 17, 1905.

E. E. SMITH. VENEER MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED 31111.30. 1905.

Attorney nnrn STATES EDWIN F. SMITH, OF

PATENT orrron.

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO VENEER-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 17, 1905.

Application filed January 30, 1905 Serial No. 243,300-

To aZl uhoml it may concern.-

Be it known that I, EDWIN F. SMITH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Veneer-Machines, of which the following is a specification.

The invention to be hereinafter described relates to veneer-machines of that general type wherein a reciprocating cross-head is provided with a knife which at each reciprocation in one direction acts upon the timber to cut therefrom a slice of wood or veneer, and more especially the present invention is an improvement on a prior patent granted to me January 2, 1890, No. 419,975.

In cutting veneers by this type of machine the wood from which the veneers are cut is usually heated, preferably by steam, to soften and make the wood pliable, so that the knifebar and eventually the entire reciprocating cross-head will become heated and expand. To provide for this expansion, it has usually been considered necessary to mount the crosshead quite loosely in its guides or ways; but this introduced the objection that such loose mounting would permit the cross-head to jump when entering the wood, thereby tending to make the veneer irregular and rough, or, on the other hand, when the cross-head has been mounted in close-fitting ways or guides to prevent such jumping the subsequent heating of the cross-head would cause it to bind in its ways or guides and break the machine. It is also found that where the pressure-bar alone is employed and has an upper edge or surface at right angles to the edge of the knife, as in the prior constructions, the veneer is not supported as it is being cut and passes between the pressurebar and knife-edge, the result being a split veneer and often a clogging of the machine, thereby necessitating a removal of the pressure-bar to clean the parts and a subsequent readjusment, all of which takes time and labor, greatly affecting the economy and character of the product. To overcome these objections, I have so mounted the cross-head that it shall be prevented from jumping and at the same time be permitted to expand gradually in one direction and have provided a shoe or support above the pressure-bar, so that the latter may always remain in adjusted position and the veneer be fully supported upon the shoe as it passes through the crosshead between the knife and pressure-bar, all of which will be hereinafter more fully explained in connection with the accompanying drawings and then definitely pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical crosssection through the cross-head and supporting-frame of a machine of the general type of my former patent having the present improvements applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a detail detached view ofa part of the cross-head, showing the means for adjusting the pressure-bar and shoe. Fig. 3 is a top plan view of a part of the pressure-bar and shoe shown in side elevation in Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a section on line 4 4, Fig. 3.

In Fig. 1, A represents any usual form. of stationary supporting-frame comprising a bed-plate A and upright standards A. The bed-plate A is provided with a guideway a, upon which rests the extended foot 5 of the cross-head B. Disposed above the extended foot 6 of the cross-head is a projecting flange 6 forming between the foot 6 and flange b a retaining-groove 6 into which projects a removable holddown Gr, secured to the bedplate A by suitable means, as the bolts g.

From this construction it will be noted that all upward jumping of the cross-head is prevented.

Disposed along the top of the frame and secured to the upright standards A is an upper guideway 60, having a groove a, in which slides the upper bearing edge 6" of the crosshead. It will be noted that the distance of the upper surface of the guideway a from the under surface of the guideway a is greater than the width of the cross-head B and that the cross-head B is held from rising in or from the lower guideway the effect of which is that a suificiently loose fit is afforded between the upper bearing edge 6" of the cross-head and the upper guideway 60 to permit the cross-head to expand upwardly under the eifects of the heat imparted thereto, and yet all jumping of the cross-head as it enters the wood is prevented by the holddown G.

The cross-head is provided, as usual and as shown in my former patent, to which reference may be had, with a diagonally-disposed throat or opening 6, and a knife 0 is held in usual manner by a clamping-plate 0, so that its cutting edge shall be in the plane of cut to adjustment for the pressure-bar D is pro-- vided and a lock formed for securely maintaining the pressure-bar in position when once it is adjusted, as will be obvious.

Disposed upon the top of the pressure-bar D is the shoe E, having, preferably, a curved upper surface, as shown in Fig. 4. This shoe is provided with an opening 6, having a reduced portion 6 forming a shoulder upon which bears the head of a clamping-screw F,

the head of said screw being thus below the upper surface of the shoe, so that it will offer no obstacle to the free passage thereover of the veneer as it is cut. The pressure bar D is likewise provided ,with an open slot d, through which the screw F passes, thus serving to clamp the shoe and presser-bar in position upon the supporting-seat it. The purpose of the clamping-screw F is to hold the pressure-bar D and shoe E from upward movement away from the supporting-seat and yet permit their relative lateral adjustment by means of slots 0 and d.

In order to adjust the shoe E upon the pressure-bar D, two screws 6 and e are employed, disposed in pairs along the length of the shoe, similar to the screws cl and cl for the pressure-barthat is to say, one screw, as e, is threaded into the shoe and passes through a hole in the back wall 0P, while the other screw 6' is threaded in the back wall 5* and has its end bearing on the rear edge of the shoe, as will readily appear from Figs. 3 and 4.

From the construction thus described it will appear that the pressure-bar D may be adjusted in proper cooperative relation with the edge of the knife by means of the adjacent screws (Z and Z-that is, the adjusting-screw cZ may be screwed back from its bearing against the edge of the pressure-bar, and then by movement of the screw cZthe pressure-bar may be moved backward as far as desired.

Likewise by reverse movement of the screws d and d the pressure-bar may be adjusted forwardly and when proper position is attained be positively and firml y held by the two screws d cl". Likewise the shoe E may be adjusted in the proper position with respect to the pressure-bar and the cutting edge of the knife by similarly operating its adjusting-screws eand e and when in adjusted position may be firmly maintained there by the coacting influence of both screws. In this construction should the throat 6 become clogged for any reason it is not necessary to move the pressure-bar D off its adjusted position, defining the thickness of the veneer to be cut; but the shoe E may be drawn back by operating its screws 0 and e, the throat cleared, and then the shoe moved back into position again. Accurate adjustment of the shoe is only of secondary importapes, as its purpose is to support the veneer and enable the throat d to be cleared, so that ready adjustment without loss of time may be made to the shoe without disturbing the adjusted relation between the edge of the knife and the pressure-bar. Moreover, by the means hereinbefore described of maintaining the cross-head in its lower guideway by a holddown any expansion of the cross-head due to heating will be in one direction, upwardly, so that a regular and proper cutting of the veneer hmayi1 be secured without jumping of the cross- Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a veneer-machine, the combination of a supporting frame having guideways, a cross-head movable in said guideways, a holddown for maintaining the cross-head from vertical movement in one of its guideways, and the other guideway being constructed with a deepened recess to permit of vertical move ment of the cross-head in the other of its guideways due to expansion from heat.

2. In a veneer-machine, the combination of a supporting-frame having an upper and lower guideway, a cross-head adapted to be reciprocated in said guideways, and provided adjacent one of said guideways with a retaininggroove, a holddown secured to the frame of the machine and extending into said retaining groove to maintain the cross-head in constant vertical relation to said guideway, the other guideway being constructed with a groove to permit of vertical expansion of the cross-head in the other of said guideways due to expansion by heat.

3. In a veneer-machine, the combination of a supporting-frame having an upper and a lower guideway, a cross-head having a knife and reciprocable in said guideway, said crosshead being provided with a retaining-groove adjacent the lower guideway, a holddown secured to the machine-frame and extending into said retaining-groove to prevent upward jump of the cross-head as it enters the wood to be cut, the upper guideway loosely fitting the upper edge of the cross-head to permit upward expansion of the cross-head into the upper guideway due to heat.

4. In a veneer-machine, the combination of a supporting-frame, a cross-head adapted to be reciprocated in said frame, and having a cutting-knife and throat, a pressure-bar disposed adjacent to the throat, to determine the thickness of veneer to be cut and passed between it and the edge of the knife, a shoe mounted upon the pressure-bar, and means for clamping the shoe and pressure-bar in adjust ed position.

5. In a veneer-machine, the combination of a supporting-frame, a cross-head adapted to be reciprocated in said frame, and having a cutting-knife and throat, a pressure-bar disposed adjacent to the throat, to determine the thickness of veneer to be cut and passed between it and the edge of the knife, a shoe having a curved upper surface and mounted upon the pressure-bar, and means for clamping the shoe and pressure-bar in adjusted position.

6. In a veneer-machine, the combination of a supporting frame, having guideways, a cross-head, adapted to be reciprocated in said guideways and havin'ga throat and knife, a pressure-bar, means for positively adjusting the pressure-bar to determine the distance between it and the edge of the cutting-knife, a

- shoe disposed upon the pressure-bar, and having'a curved upper surface, and means for adjusting the shoe upon the pressure-bar.

7 In a veneer-machine, the combination of a supporting frame having guideways, a cross-head adapted to be reciprocated in said guideways and having a throat and knife, a pressure-bar having a slot, screws for adjust ing the pressure-bar toward and'from the knife, a shoe having a curved upper surface and supported upon said pressure-bar, said shoe having a countersunk opening, screws for adjusting the shoe upon the pressure-bar to clear the throat, and a clamping-screw passing through the opening of the shoe and the slot of the pressurebar.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

EDWIN F. SMITH.

Witnesses:

EUGENE M. HENOFER, FRANCIS GooDHUE, Jr. 

